Concept Paper

Within the services sector tourism is the mainstay of the majority of regional economies. This is particularly the case of the smaller economies of CARICOM, where tourism plays an important social role and has a major impact on their financial stability and their external position. The United States constitutes the main tourist market for the larger Caribbean countries, including those of the Hispanic Caribbean, the Dutch West Indies, the French West Indies and the US territories, and accounts for 53% of the total number of tourist arrivals followed by Europe (23%).